Wednesday, 13 January 2010

Welcome Guest

On Saturday there were several very sorry looking Redwings hanging about on the pavements around our house. One ventured into our garden, which isn't so much a garden as a few slabs and a bit of gravel. Its visits were very brief and it didn't seem interested in any of the bird food that I'd put out. It started to mainly hang about in our parking area behind the garden where there were a few unfrozen vegetated corners. It was still with us on Sunday, but looking quite unwell. On Monday I was very surprised not to find its little corpse first thing in the morning, it was increasingly inactive though. I had to find something it would eat! I tootled off to the pet store where I purchased a big bag of (extremely expensive) meal worms. On the way home I stopped at various places to lob a few out of the car window wherever I could see starving Redwings congregating at the roadside. The meal worms were the dried variety so to make them as palatable as possible I soaked them in warm water for a while before putting a few large piles on the parking area and around the garden. I'm happy to say that the bird eagerly ate these, that is when it wasn't being chased off by an equally hungry Song Thrush. Even though the snow had all gone this morning the Redwing was still around and looking much, much improved too. I took a couple of photos of him/her, not very good because despite being tired and hungry it always remained quite alert and difficult to approach, so I had to take them through the window. I think he/she left this afternoon, and although it's only one small life saved out of many thousands, it was well worth the tiny effort on my part. During the coldest of the weather my regular twenty or so House Sparrows vanished, even though I kept the feeders full. I don't know where they went or why but they're back now. I suppose a lot more people than usual were putting food out and it was just better than mine!!

About Me

Originally hailing from Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire, home of many breweries and the birthplace of that delicious/vile foodstuff Marmite. I moved to East Devon 17 years ago and I love it here! I've always had a passion for natural history and got addicted to birding around 10 years ago when I twitched the Seaton Alpine Swifts and then self found my first ever Turtle Dove and Osprey. Over the last few years I've branched out a bit from birding and now enjoy botany as you might have noticed! I love photographing wildflowers, fungi and just about any wildlife. I am in 'early middle age' and am supremely intelligent, immensely witty, stunningly attractive and erm... Oh yes, modest! I am also, without doubt the best (female) birder (called Karen) in East Devon (although these days I'm more than likely not!)
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All photos on this blog are copyright Karen Woolley unless stated otherwise